Gov. Greg Abbott shut down bars in Texas again on Friday and scaled back restaurant dining, including on the Texas side of Texarkana.
As confirmed coronavirus cases surge, Abbott ordered rafting and tubing outfitters on Texas' popular rivers to close and said outdoor gatherings of 100 people or more must be approved by local governments. The actions reflect how Texas is scrambling to contain an outbreak less than two months after a reopening that was one of the fastest in the U.S.
"It is clear that the rise in cases is largely driven by certain types of activities, including Texans congregating in bars," Abbott said. "The actions are essential to our mission to swiftly contain this virus and protect public health."
He did not say when bars might reopen again.
Here in Texarkana, restaurants like Twisted Fork will likely be affected by the 50% capacity limit put in place after operating at 75% capacity for two weeks during the phased reopening.
Jodi Rogers, a manager at Twisted Fork where Friday night's plan included live music from keyboardist Skylar Smith in the lounge, admitted they're moving by the seat of their pants these days.
"The 75% had kind of helped us. It gave us enough room to start bringing music back on Friday nights and being able to pay a musician. It also, I think, gave the community a sense of security so people were coming in, like sitting in our dining room," Rogers said.
She noted that they also had a wedding rehearsal dinner planned for Friday night. It was scaled down.
"I don't know how we're going to be able to have any big parties," Rogers said. She says they'll probably keep trying live music after the July 4 holiday weekend.
"You just don't know what to do we're just going to do what the governor says," she said.
Rogers sees another potential impact beyond the capacity limit, too.
"It's also going to affect us because the community is going to be nervous again," she said, "and people are not going to come out as much. So that's the two ways it's going to affect us."
Over at Pecan Point Gastropub and Brewery, manager Megan Oliver believes dialing restaurant capacity back down to 50% will not affect operations there. That percentage gives them 100 customers, still good business, she says.
"It doesn't really affect us too terribly, unless there's an event going on at the Perot (Theatre), which obviously is not going on," Oliver said. She suspects they'll continue business as normal at the downtown restaurant near the historic theater.
With a big event happening nearby, they may hit 100 people, but typically that's not the case, she said. They won't risk breaking a violation of any sort, she said.
They've also maintained the same COVID-19 safety and cleaning protocols. Oliver says they'll continue these same measures until all is settled because they don't want to put customers in danger.
"We are still using our disposable menus, so we haven't gone back to our regular menus yet," Oliver said. "We still have all of our tables 6 feet apart to make everything safe and sanitary. And in all of our to-go orders, we include hand sanitizer and things like that to keep people as clean as they can get."
As of Friday, Texas reported more than 17,000 confirmed new cases in the last three days with record high positive tests of 5,996 on Thursday. The day's tally of 4,739 hospitalizations was also a record. The state's rolling infection rate hit nearly 12% - a level not seen since the state was in a broad lockdown in mid-April.
Until this week, Abbott had maintained that worsening trends in June were a matter of concern but not alarm. Now he's urging people to stay home.
The figures include a doubling of the infection rate to more than 10% - a mark Abbott said in May would be a "red flag" in his reopening plan.
Under the newest rollbacks, restaurant dining rooms must scale back to half capacity starting Monday. The shuttering of rafting and tubing businesses comes after people consistently packed waterways since the state reopened in May.
Abbott is not the only governor backpedaling following a swift reopening. Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey is telling residents to stay home and on Thursday declaring the state "on pause."
(Texarkana Gazette reporter Aaron Brand contributed to this report.)